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Thursday, February 19, 2015

WA PREMIER'S BOOK AWARD CUTS A COWARDLY INSULT: KIM SCOTT
i must be honest.
i am forced.
here are some facts of my life.
my father was a member of the Liberal Party. (he resigned in the 1990s)
his father was a green man and a hippy before such things.
i was in the group that founded the WA Wilderness Society branch.
all three of us read and chatted with intense curiosity.
i have all their books and all my books in this house i share.
people died, people divorced, and so my father's father married my mother's mother and they made each other laugh.
the mother's lead the family laughter.
all these snippets and more have gone into the story that is me.

WA PREMIER'S BOOK AWARD CUTS A COWARDLY INSULT: KIM SCOTT
i have never, ever, been disappointed by the Liberal Party.
why not?
because i have never, ever, in my entire life, placed a first vote beside any member of that party, on any voting slip.
The Labor Party, however, has been a constant source.

WA PREMIER'S BOOK AWARD CUTS A COWARDLY INSULT: KIM SCOTT
an essential characteristic of humanity, one no culture can live without, is the ability, the desire, the willingness, to tell stories.
stories inform, inspire, challenge, inflame, nurture imagination, creativity, empathy and probably help us sleep, develop better language skills, and strengthen memories.

WA PREMIER'S BOOK AWARD CUTS A COWARDLY INSULT: KIM SCOTT
only a barbarian would slash an already meagre investment in a state's ability to tell it's story.
there was man in Queensland who killed his government's investment.
the barbarian has left the building.
by popular vote.

WA PREMIER'S BOOK AWARD CUTS A COWARDLY INSULT: KIM SCOTT
this story will not have a happy ending.